Malaysian Political Scene | Has Najib proven....? (Kuala Lumpur)

Update July 24, Protected contentProtected content~~~~Update June 11, Protected contentPM to announce Cabinet reshuffle Friday?Protected content~~~~Update July 03:Najib gets interviewed by BBC. Our commentary:Protected content~~~~Update June 21: UMNO's party elections are gearing up...! More drama to ensue!Protected content~~~~Update May 15:The Prime Minister announces his cabinet line up..they are the few very old and capable, the very new and fresh,and the completely unknown and untested...its a weak cabinet... ~~~~Update May 6:The Barisan Nasional Coalition forms the Federal Government with Protected contentand the Pakatan Rakyat Coalition forms the Federal Oppossition with 89 seats.BN did extremely well to hold onto power, with slimmer majoritiesPR did extremely well to penetrate key BN seats/fortresses.With a 84.84% voter turnout, Malaysians voted with their finger.Change may not have arrived, but its seeds have taken roots.it will be another 5 years to see those fruits of labour, and a new generation of politicians will emerge...with Hope very much alive!~~~Update April 10: May 5th is Election/Polling Day. . April 20 Nomination Day.~~~Update April 3: Parliament dissolved on April 3, Protected content , paving way for National/General Elections (GE) within 60 days...State Assemblies will follow suit paving way for State Elections as well.

All voters will vote for a State Assemblyman and a Federal Member of Parliament except those registered to vote in the Federal Territories, where there is only one vote for the Federal MP. Sarawak recently held their state elections, therefore they are not expected to dissolve their Assembly (State Parliament).

Barisan Nasional (BN aka National Front) is the current incumbent for the Federal Government and consists of 13 component parties, each representing a race based community or specific interest groups. The top brass of these component parties typically put forward their parties top names as candidates for State Assemblymen and Members of Parliament, of which those who succeed well become State Executive Councillors (State Cabinet Members) and Federal Ministers/Deputy Ministers. Those who do not do well in the polls but are recognised for their contribution can be made Senators and therefore Deputy Ministers and Ministers to fill any gaps in Government.

UMNO (United Malay Nasional Organisation) is the lynch pin of the BN, so its President and Deputy President become the President and Deputy President of BN; and in turn the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia.

In the past, the PM/Executive has exerted influence over the Palace, the Legislature, the Judiciary, the Civil Service, the .... well everyone really. The PM is undoubtedly the most powerful person in Malaysia. During the Mahathir era, we were rotating more Kings/Monarchs then PMs.

The Federal Opposition has become more cohesive with Anwar. There are the Opposition Pact (aka Pakatan Rakyat/PR) is a grouping of KeAdilan/PKR, PAS and DAP ~ three parties of different ideologies, but with the common ground that is opposed to BN. They were able to reduce BN's Parliamentary from 90%+ to 63.1% in the last General Election. This time they endeavour to ensure that BN's Parliamentary simple marjority is further reduced

At the State level, PR did extremely well with major states in their control, namely: Kelantan (PAS), Penang (DAP), Kedah (PAS), Selangor (PKR) and technically the control of Kuala Lumpur with 10 out 11 Parliamentary seats. Perak (DAP/PAS/PKR) reverted to BN when two of its assemblymen walked over to BN's Friend Zone!

So the question on everyone's minds is ... how much more BN will lose, will they achieve their 2/3's marjority, will they retain their 50.1%+ majority, who will be the new casualty of politics, will BN or PR be in the seat of power in Federal Government, how much more can Anwar make inroads to Putrajaya, and how much of politics and witch hunting will ensue thereafter. What will be the role of Najib and more interestingly Mahathir after GE13.

WIth an overwhelming segment of voters considered Generation XY and Y, who really don't care about Global politics, we may have an electorate concerned about their Hip Hop culture, Free Concerts, More Free-bies, and other petty things like that.

Because of the weakening perspective of the BN coalition, a third hand of power is now establishing itself as a strong player in the formation of the state and possibly federal government. In the past, the Sultanates and the King have merely endorsed the people's choice at the ballot box, but in the last GE, PM Badawi had a hard time getting the Sultan of Terengganu to endorse BN's choice for a Menteri Besar (Chief Minister) for that state. Some see as the Sultans exerting their power for a more favourable choice.

Whilst the campaigning has taken place for the last couple of years, the official campaigning will commence tomorrow, as the Elections Commission announcing the dates for candidate registration and actual polling date. KL unfortunately does not allow public campaign advertisements, so the atmosphere will be like business as usual. But outside of KL, it will get tense if not a carnival like atmosphere. Although some say that the cost of campaigning will be in the range of RM100million, the final tag is expected to be RM2billion.

Malaysia does not produce great TV series like NCIS, CSI, American Idol, etc, but Oh Boy! does it have its politics!! The amount of talent that is directly involved in Politics makes it an industry of its own. Politics in Malaysia is Chilli Padi ~ hot and spicy, with regional interest (nudge nudge Singapore) being a keen observer as to their good fortunes when they go the polls in couple of years.

What will be exciting are the upcoming scandals, revelations, and hits and misses that will shape the final outcome of the GE13; creating a new era of politics for a new generation of Malaysians.